BLOG

Mark your calendars! Friday, November 15, 2019!

Due to inclement weather and road conditions, we are putting runners’ safety first and changing it up a little this year! Instead of running the official game balls from East Lansing to Ann Arbor through Michigan’s beautiful back roads, our dedicated MSU Army ROTC cadets will depart from Dem Hall at 2:00 AM sharp, being safely transported to Ann Arbor by our title sponsor Dean Trailways. When they arrive, they will join their U-M counterparts and commence a 64-mile run through the U-M campus and around the famous Diag. This unified corps will wear its path for nearly 10 hours, carrying the game balls and American Flag, and complete its last symbolic mile together at Noon, crossing the Finish Line near the Diag’s flagpole.

To kick-off this event, please join our MSU Army ROTC cadets at 1:15 AM before their 2:00 AM Launch! They will run a ceremonial lap around the Sparty statue near MSU’s Demonstration Hall and then board the bus bound for U-M.

Please join us at the U-M Diag at 11:30 AM to cheer on the cadets as they finish the Race. We are excited to again welcome Fmr. Lt. Gov. and current SBAM President, Brian Calley, as he runs the last 5 miles with the cadets. Mr. Calley, sponsors, and others will honor the runners and Alex Powell’s legacy during a short ceremony after the Race.

For those who know the traditional form this event takes, you can see the challenge this year’s weather presented. How we’ve responded is a wonderful example of how students with disabilities face and overcome daily and unpredictable challenges, and how they rise above them each day to persevere through them. The true honor is in the journey, not the destination. Even though Alex’s life was cut short, his courage and dedication give us a lifetime’s worth of wisdom to which we should all aspire!